As of 4pm Wednesday August 13th we have raised $4,975 to replace the equipment stolen last weekend in the infamous Veggielution Summer Burglary of 2014. We still don't understand how somebody would vandalize a place that is meant to serve our community by growing food and providing a sanctuary of peace and learning. We just hope that these people decide to live a more just lifestyle in the future.

In the meantime, we are strategizing on how to use these $4,975 dollars to the best effect. Some of the equipment that we lost was not used on a daily basis, but extremely critical for certain operations at specific times of the year. For example, we had a machine called a "walk-behind tractor" which was fitted with a 5-foot wide "sicklebar mower" which was perfect for cleaning up large areas of weeds, or taking down a cover crop in small areas. Our rototiller was used to prepare soil in small areas at the farm or at the school gardens. This equipment was used but cost much more to purchase new, so we need to decide what is most critical. Then of course there was the carjack, wrenches and other similar small tools that thankfully we can replace immediately using the funds that were acquired.

We've met with the park supervisor and rangers about upgrading our security. We have already purchased better locks and are installing security cameras, motion sensor alarms and other systems to make sure this never happens again. We are also speaking with a security system professional that has offered his assistance in planning this project.

We are so grateful that many of you decided to support us this week to replace this equipment. We especially would like to acknowledge Martin Squibbs and another anonymous donor who committed $1,000 each to our equipment replacement campaign.

We'll keep you updated on further developments. But once again, thank you. This unfortunate incident proves that our Veggielution community is very resilient. Go Team